Video: Ladies’ Day out at Aintree

Clock-face hats, Bambi-inspired heels and a newspaper print dress were just some of the items adorning members of the crowd at the Crabbies Grand National Festival today.

And the Liverpool ladies gave their support to race organisers who have tried to ban unflattering photographs of racegoers.

Vicky Sweeney said: “It’s my first time here. It’s very important to look good at Aintree. You want to feel really nice and have a good day, it makes you feel extra special to get dressed up.

“We definitely get a bit picked on but it’s not just women from Liverpool who are here and it’s not just women from Liverpool who can dress awful. Women here are seen as representing Liverpool. Looking around everyone’s really made an effort today and they all look beautiful.”

Jenny Hooper, from Croxteth, Liverpool, said she had been planning her outfit for two months.

“There is too much negative pressure on girls here. The majority of girls here look absolutely beautiful and there’s far too much focus on anyone who doesn’t look good,” she said.

“Obviously there’s always going to be someone who misses the mark but everyone’s here to have a good time. It doesn’t matter what they wear at the end of the day as long as they’re having fun.”

Tens of thousands of racegoers attend each year and the Grand National is seen as the world’s most famous horse race, generating TV viewing figures in the hundreds of millions from across the globe.

But recent Ladies Days have reportedly failed to sell out with suggestions regular racegoers have been put off by media coverage of some women taking advantage of the “lax” dress code, banned at other racecourses.